Tap construction



Feb. 1, 1938. E: c 2,107,164

TAP CONSTRUCTION Original Filed Feb. 28, 1956 Patented Feb. 1, 1938 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE TAP CONSTRUCTION Frank E. Rice, Detroit, Mich., assignor to American Tap-Bush Company, Detroit, Mich., a corporation of Delaware Application February 28, 1936, Serial No. 66,216 Renewed June 5, 1937 usual manner. The lower end of the tap has an 6 Claims.

The present invention relates to tap construction and more particularly to construction of taps utilized for beer or other barrels, and to means whereby loss of the attaching sleeve is prevented when the sleeve is separated from the means coupling it to the tap.

It has been found from experience that beer barrel and like taps made with separable sleeves, frequently when removed from barrels, have the sleeve separated from the tap so as to become split halves secured together by means of rivets lost. which pass through the wings I of the coupling The present invention has for an object the ring. provision of means whereby a beer barrel tap, Formed on the portion 3 of the body, adjasuch as the Peerless type is provided with cent its lower end, are two diametrically opposed means for preventing separation of the sleeve lugs 8 and 9 of comparatively short axial length. from the tap when the coupling ring is discon- Also formed on the portion 3 of the body are two nected from the sleeve. diametrically opposed axially extending lugs ill Another object of the present invention is to and II, of substantial length and illustrated as provide a beer barrel tap, of the separable sleeve slightly longer than half the length of the portype, with means for preventing'loss of the sleeve tion 3 of the tap. Lugs I0 and H are angularly from the tap when the means for connecting the and axially spaced with respect to the first lugs sleeve to the tap is disconnected from the sleeve. mentioned, that is, lugs 8 and 9.

A further object of the present invention is to The sleeve D has its lower end provided with a v improve tap construction generally. central opening 12 for surrounding the neck of The above, other and further objects of the a tap bush, and with the usual inwardly propresent invention will be apparent from the foljecting lug l3 for efiecting bayonet connection lowing description and accompanying drawing. with the bush, in a manner well understood. The An embodiment of the present invention is ilsleeve is provided with an outward annular lustrated in the accompanying drawing, and the flange l4 for overlying the outer end of the bush views thereof are as follows: to position the connected cap rigidly in position. Figure 1 is a side elevational view of a beer The upper end of the sleeve has a threaded neck barrel tap constructed in accordance with the i5 which enters the interiorly threaded portion principles of the present invention and showing l6 of the coupling ring 0. Interiorly of the neck the sleeve as it appears when connected in posi- I5 and at two diametrically opposite points, axialtion to secure the tap to a barrel and support 1y extending notches or slots I! are formed in the apump rod. sleeve. The neck portion of the sleeve is thick- Figure 2 is an elevational viewof a tap conened thus providing a shoulder 18 at the lower structed in accordance with the principles of the inward part of the thickened portion. In the present invention, showing the coupling sleeve formation of the sleeve, extensions l9 and 20 are disconnected from the coupling ring yet retained cast with the sleeve to form elongations of the on the tap against loss. slots extending below the shoulder 18 of the sleeve.

Figure 3 is an enlarged axial sectional view The sleeve D is connected to the tap A by enthrough the sleeve of the present invention. gaging the slots I! over the lugs 8 and 9 at the Figure 4 is an enlarged fragmental elevational lower extremity of the portion 3 of the tap, and View, partially in section of that portion of the then after the slots clear these lugs, the sleeve tap which receives the coupling sleeve, showing is given a turn of substantially 90 until the slots the connecting ring in section, rotatably but not l1 engage the lugs Ill and H whereupon the axially movable on the tap, and lugs for coopersleeve is pushed along the tap until in position ating with the sleeve in various manners. to be threadedly engaged by the coupling ring C. Figure 5 is a top plan view of the coupling The fact that the lugs I0 and II are of substansleeve showing the diametrically opposite slots tial length assures that, at all times, while the therein for cooperating with the lugs on the tap threaded neck 15 of the sleeve is within position body, I to be threadedly engaged by the neck C, the slots Figure 6 is a bottom plan view of the tap body I! of the sleeve will be in engagement with the especially of Figure 4. lugs 10 and H, thus permitting axial but pre- The drawing will now be explained.

The form of tap herein illustrated comprises the usual body A having a lateral connection; I for an air hose, a top nut 2 which is adapted to compress a washer about the pump tube B in the venting rotative movement between the sleeve and the tap body.

' The tap, with its sleeve, is connected to a tap bush by loosening the ring C with respect to the sleeve, and dropping the sleeve until there is sum- 2 cient space between the top inward surfaces of the lugs l3 and the under surfaces of the overhanging shoulders or ledges in the bush as, is well understood. The lugs I3 are then engaged under such ledges and the tap as a whole given rotative movement whereupon the ring 0 is rotated in such direction as to move the tap body downwardly against the tap bush and raise the sleeve D so that a clamping eiiect against the flanges of the push will be accomplished. It is to'be understood that when such a tap is applied to a bush, the usual washer, not shown, is applied about the reduced extremity of the tap bush body, and it is this washer which rests against the outer surface of the tap bush.

Should it so happen that when the tap of the present invention is disconnected from the bush,

and the sleeve D becomes disconnected from the coupling ring C, the sleeve will fall until the shoulder thereof engages the lugs 8 and 9, thus preventing accidental displacement of the sleeve D from the tap bush, and thereby preventing loss of such sleeve. Fig. -3 shows the manner of engagement of one of lugs 8 or 9 with the shoulder ll? of the sleeve when the sleeve is disconnected from the coupling ring and dropped as shown in Fig. 2.

In order to remove the sleeve D from the top bush body, it must be manipulated and rotated so as to straddle the lugs 8 and 9 by the extensions 19 and 20 of the notches H, which can be done by manipulation of the sleeve. When the notches H are engaged with the lugs 8 and 9, the sleeves thereupon may be very readily removed from the association with a bush.

The invention has been described herein more or less precisely as to details, yetit is to be understood that the invention is not to be limited thereby as changes may be made in the arrangement and proportion of parts, and equivalents may be substituted, without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. f

The invention is claimed as follows:

7 l. A beer barrel or like tap comprising a tap body and a removable connecting sleeve, said tap body having on it two pairs of lugs, the lugs of each pair being diametrically opposite each other,

the lugs of one pairbeing angularly and axially spaced with respect to the other pair, said sleeve having two diametrically opposed interior notches or grooves adapted to pass over one pair of lugs when the sleeve is applied to the body and to receive the other pair of lugs after application tothe body and when in position for attachment to the body, connecting means on said body for securing saidsleeve to it in tap attaching position, the engagement of said notches with said other lugs preventing relative rotation of the sleeve'and body during attachment and detachment of the sleeve and body, and said one pair of lugs preventing accidental loss of the sleeve from the body when the sleeve is separated from its attaching means.

2. A beer barrel or like tap comprising a body and a separable connecting sleeve, said sleeve having notches orgrooves formed in its interior surface and extending inwardly from one end thereof, the other end of said sleeve being adapted for connection to a tap bush, said body having a part enterable within said sleeve and provided with lugs near its entering end for passage through said grooves and after passage and rotative movement of said sleeve to underlie a shoulder formed within said sleeve, said body also having other lugs angularly and axially spaced from said first mentioned lugs enterable into said grooves when the sleeve and body are in position for connection to prevent relative rotation thereof during connection, and a ring rotatably carried by said body and adapted for threaded connection to said sleeve to connect said tap to a bush, said first lugs serving to prevent separation of the sleeve from the body when said ring is disconnected from said sleeve.

3. A beer barrel tap including a tap body, an

attaching sleeve adapted to engage a tap bush,

and a threaded ring for connecting said sleeve to the body, said sleeve and'body having cooperating means to prevent the removal of the sleeve from the. body when the sleeve is disconnected from the ring and occupies one angular position on said tap and to permit removal of said sleeve fromsaid tap when said sleeve is in a difieren angular position.

4. Abeer barreltap including a tap body, an attaching sleeve adapted to engage a tap bush, -a threaded ring for connecting said sleeve to said body, said sleeve and body having'cooperating means toprevent relative rotation of the sleeve and' body during connection and disconnection of the ringand sleeve, and other means to prevent separation of the sleeve from the body when said sleeveis disconnected from said ring and occupies one angular position on said tap and to permit removal of said sleeve from said tap when said sleeve is in a different angular position.

5. A beer barrel tap including a'tapbody, an

attaching sleeve adapted to engage -a tap bush, I

a threaded ring for connecting said sleeve to said body, said body having anaxially extending lug and said sleeve having an internally formed axially extending recess to engage said lug to prevent relative rotation of the sleeve and body during application of the tap to a bush, said body having another lug angularly and-axially spaced .from said first lug engageable by said recess for application and removal of the sleeve to said body and posltionedto prevent separation of the. sleeve from the body-"when saidsleeve is disconnected and dropped free of engagement with said ring.

or recessed at two diametrical opposite points,

lugsi projecting below said shoulder and defining extensions of said notches or recessesptwo. lugs on said body near the lower end thereof adapted to en'ter saidnotches or recess of the sleeve when the sleeve is applied'to the body and'to project.

undersaid shoulder when said sleeve is applied to said body and rotated on said body, andother lugs engageable by said sleeve notches for preventing rotative :movement of said sleeve when said ring is connected to said sleeve for securing said body and sleeve in operative position on a tap bush. 7 FRANK E. RICE.' 

